Come and Find Me by Sarah Hilary (Marnie Rome book #5) | Book Review | (@sarah_hilary @headlinepg)#ComeandFindMe

Published by Headline

Available in ebook, hardback and paperback (4 October 2018)

384 pages

My thanks to Anne Cater of Random Things Tours and Headline for the invitation to take part in the paperback publication of Come and Find Me, number 5 in the Marnie Rome series.  You can find reviews of all previous 4 books here on the blog.

|   About the Book  |

On the surface, Lara Chorley and Ruth Hull have nothing in common, other than their infatuation with Michael Vokey. Each is writing to a sadistic inmate, sharing her secrets, whispering her worst fears, craving his attention.

DI Marnie Rome understands obsession. She’s finding it hard to give up her own addiction to a dangerous man: her foster brother, Stephen Keele. She wasn’t able to save her parents from Stephen. She lives with that guilt every day.

As the hunt for Vokey gathers pace, Marnie fears one of the women may have found him – and is about to pay the ultimate price.

|   My Thoughts   |

How did we get to Book 5! I’ve been reading this series since the beginning and I’m going to say it again, it just gets better.

Come and Find Me is set 7 weeks after the end of the previous story, Marnie and her team are called in following a violent riot at Cloverton prison which has left many casualties – including Stephen Keele, Marnie’s foster brother. Those of you following the series will know all about him. The man suspected of carrying out the violence and starting the subsequent fire, Michael Vokey, has escaped.

Some of the chapters are narrated by one of the inmates in hospital and it is through his voice that we learn about Michael Vokey.  Vokey is an dangerous individual. Transferred from another prison for being implicated in a cellmate’s death, he has been imprisoned for terrorising a young mother at her home. He seems to become a legend within the prison with people in his thrall. In addition, he has acquired two ‘groupies’. Two women, both in different parts of the country are writing him letters, some quite explicit. Why are these women so enamoured with him – and are one or both involved somehow in his escape.

Some of the violence inflicted is at times graphically described – not gratuitously by any means but after reading about the batteries, any mention of cactus made me extremely nervous!

This book, whilst just as riveting as the others, in my opinion has a more introspective feel to it with much soul searching, especially on Marnie’s part about her parents and Stephen, and in particular something she was given at the end of the previous story is playing on her mind. The working relationship she has with DS Noah Jake is as close as ever – in fact they seem more like friends than DI and DS – something which does concern me a little now. I get that he always has her back but I feel that the lines between their working partnership and friendship have become a little blurred and she seems to rely on his judgement a little more than she should.

It’s always good to see new characters arrive in a series and DS Harry Kennedy makes a welcome return. I sensed a little spark of something between Harry and Marnie and I’m really keen to see if that is explored further in the series. In addition DCI Lorna Ferguson, Marnie’s boss is still in charge. She’s still a ballbreaker and doesn’t suffer fools but I actually really liked her in this book. She appeared in the previous story and I felt she was depicted as Marnie’s nemesis, however following those events, the two of them seemed to have found a way to tolerate each other and I really liked Ferguson’s dry sense of humour and the way she kept the team on their toes.

The pace of Come and Find Me felt a bit slower than previous books, although that isn’t a criticism. This story was more about a manhunt and was probably more character focused than one of constant action. The issue of prison overcrowding is a big factor of this story and it does make you realise how easy it is for petty irritations to escalate into a full blown incendiary situation.

As ever, Sarah Hilary has created an addictive and utterly engrossing read. There is tension and suspense where there needs to be whilst at other times, you can get to know the characters and how they fit in to the story as a whole. There are of course some surprises along the way – and the team themselves eventually realise that they may need to look at the case in a different way.

If you haven’t started this series yet, why not? I think you could perhaps jump in with this one as sufficient backstory is given to make it a meaningful read, although as with all series, you do get the most enjoyment following the characters from the very beginning.

This is still one of my favourite crime series. Waiting for Book number 6 now. No pressure Sarah!

|   About the Author   |

Sarah Hilary’s debut, Someone Else’s Skin, won Theakstons Crime Novel of the Year 2015 and was a World Book Night selection for 2016. The Observer’s Book of the Month (‘superbly disturbing’) and a Richard & Judy Book Club bestseller, it has been published worldwide. No Other Darkness, the second in the series was shortlisted for a Barry Award in the US. Her DI Marnie Rome series continued with Tastes Like Fear, and Quieter Than Killing.

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